Life Without Cali
by Cali Vinett
Summary: Sequel to Cali Vinnett: Mediator Extraordinaire. Cali & Paul are gone. Jesse's alive with Cali's powers. Life without Cali is hard, especially when things happen that only Cali could explain to Suze & Jesse. If they don't fix it, it could destroy everythi
1. Life Without Cali

            **A/N: As requested, I am continuing with my fic. Thanks to everyone who reviewed my first one! You guys kept me going! I LOVE YOU ALLLL!!! *Boinces* (I'm kind of hyper right now…I drew this awesome butterfly on my notebook, and my friend's gonna draw it on my back with henna, so I'm happy and all that. Woo!) Lemme know what you all think of this!**

            **Disclaimer: Anything familiar is Meg Cabot's, as usual. I didn't write the mediator series. My pen name's Cali Vinett, not Jenny Caroll. The only thing I own is the plot, and Cali(xte). **

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            Chapter 1: Life Without Cali

                        **Suze**

            Well, Cali was dead, and it was back to the way things used to be. It was even back to the way things were before Paul, since she had killed him. It had taken a long time to register that they were both dead, believe me. Jesse seemed to be in shock for awhile. He just couldn't believe that she had sacrificed herself to give us a chance together. The only difference was that Jesse was alive, and we had a real, working relationship. Father Dom could no longer disapprove. 

            "Susannah?" I heard from outside. Jesse still came over a lot, and we'd sit on the porch roof and talk, just like we used to. I walked over to the window seat and knelt on it.

            "Hey," I called out the window, watching him climb up the ivy on the side of the house. That plant was useful, let me tell you. I sighed, thinking about how Cali's parents had taken the news. They actually hadn't been too shocked. I could hear the conversation as if it was happening again right in front of my face. "Mrs. Vinnett?" I remember saying. "I have some…bad news." 

            "Oh? Who are you?" she had asked me, tilting her head. I should've known these weren't Cali's real parents, because they both had dark hair, and Cali's was a golden blonde that I actually kind of envied. 

            "Sorry. I'm Suze – Susannah Simon. She was in my class," I'd said, feeling really awkward. Father Dom had, to my great relief, stepped into the picture. 

            "Mrs. Vinnett, I am Father Dominic, the principal of the Junipero Serra Mission Academy. It's a pleasure to meet you. I feel in this situation, it's better to cut to the chase," he said with a sigh. "Calixte is – "

            "No longer with us. Am I right?" her mother had said, to my total shock. I remember my jaw dropping and Jesse reaching down and kind of closing my mouth. Calixte's mother – er, foster mother? – sighed. "Yes, we knew this would happen. Did she tell you we're not really her parents?" When all three of us nodded, she nodded. "We adopted her when she was fourteen. She told us her story, and told us what she thought her destiny was. Evidently, she was right," she said with a slight smile. "Would you all like to come in? It's a little chilly out here," she'd said, rubbing her arms. 

            "Well, we don't want to impose," Father Dom had said good-naturedly, but when Cali's foster mom insisted, he'd agreed, and we'd all walked in. Mrs. Vinnett made us tea. I would've preferred coffee, but I didn't say anything. I mean, it's just not nice to make someone do something out of their way when her daughter – or foster daughter – just died. Is it? 

            "What's on your mind, _querida_?" Jesse asked jolting me back to the present. 

            I shook my head. "Nothing. Just thinking about Cali. Sucks that she had to die, doesn't it?" I sighed. "I wish we could bring her back…or something. Don't you? She was…interesting. I liked her. I have to admit, I'm glad Paul's gone, though," I said quietly, walking onto the porch roof and sitting down next to Jesse, who pulled me into his arms. I was happy like this. I hated that Cali's death was the thing that fixed it, but it did. Fix it, I mean. 

            Jesse nodded. "I agree," he said quietly. We had both sort of gotten used to Jesse having Cali's powers, so it wasn't as weird, or as annoying when he read my mind now, or heard my thoughts. "I have to wonder, though. Didn't Calixte say she was the daughter of the Angel and Malaengel of Life? Didn't she also have some strange powers that even angels shouldn't have? Or something along those lines. If she did, I probably have them, and maybe I can bring her back," he said with a shrug. (Which was kind of odd, since I was in his arms)

            I blinked. "I don't know, Jesse. You weren't trained to be able to use them the way she was. From what she said, her powers sound a little dangerous." I couldn't help it. The last thing I wanted was for Jesse to try something and get himself killed all over again. If he did that, all of Cali's hard work and sacrifice would be for nothing. 

            "Susannah, you worry too much," Jesse said, shifting so I was facing him, then leaned down and kissed me lightly. "Relax. Everything will be fine. I promise I won't try anything without…researching somehow," he said with a smile. He was learning how to use the internet, which was still very strange to him. I smiled. He'd fit in the modern world once he got the hang of it. 

            That made me think of how it had gone when I'd introduced him to my friends. I had arranged to meet Cee cee and Adam at the beach. The scene played in my head. "Cee, Adam, this is Jesse," I'd said, introducing them. 

            Cee cee had been watching me with a knowing look in her eyes. She did know about Jesse, after all. "Hello, nice to meet you," she'd said, friendlily, holding out a hand. And when I'd introduced him to mom and Andy…oh man. You should've seen mom's jaw drop. Andy just kind of stood there. It was _really_ funny. I smiled, thinking of Kelly Prescott's reaction to him. Jesse and I were at the mall, buying him some modern day clothes. 

            Kelly had walked over to me while Jesse was trying on the clothes I had picked out for him. "Hey, Suze! How's it going? What've you been up to?" she asked, multiple shopping bags hanging off her arm, along with a white clutch purse to match her outfit. 

            "Hey, Kelly," I said, giving her my best smile. "Oh, you know, the usual. What about you?" I really shouldn't have asked her what she'd been up to. I really shouldn't have. As soon as I stopped talking, Kelly launched into a detailed description of what she'd done in the past few days. It went something like "Igotmynailsdone, and Igotmyhaircut, and I of course boughtanew wardrobe (haveyou gone shoppingyet, Suze?), and I wentoutwith this reallycute guy, and – Ohmigosh! _Who_ is that God that just walked out of the dressing room?" I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing when I saw who she was staring at. The guy _was_ a god, and it was none other than Jesse. 

            "I _have to meet this guy," Kelly said, walking towards him. _

            "You're sure this is – Ah, hello," Jesse added, looking at Kelly. "Susannah, are you sure this fits right?" he asked me, completely ignoring Kelly. Kelly looked flabbergasted as Jesse walked past her and over to me. I grinned and looked at him. He looked _excellent_ in modern clothes. I mean, he had some. But we were really trying to figure out his personal style. So far it was looking a mix between prep and goth. He liked leather. I couldn't blame him…he looked _so_ good in it. 

            "Yes, Jesse, that's how they fit. Look around you," I said, gesturing to the other guys in the store. Jesse tugged at the waist of his jeans, not used to them. You should've seen the look on Kelly's face. "What's she thinking, Jesse?" I asked him. 

            Jesse grinned. He loved to use Cali's powers. He thought for a moment, then almost started laughing. "She's thinking 'how could he choose _her over __me?' She's rather…what's the word I'm looking for?" he asked me. _

            "If you're looking for skanky, bitchy, or stuck-up, then yeah. She is." 

            "Actually, I think the word I was looking for was conceited…but those seem to work as well," he said, grinning. Then he did something he's never done before: kissed me right in the open. I couldn't help grinning at the look of utter horror on Kelly's face. "Alright, enough of that. I'm going to go change back into my clothes," he said, walking back over to his dressing room. Kelly glared angrily at me as she walked by, and I shrugged, still grinning. I couldn't help it. Jesse _was_ an amazing kisser, and gorgeous to boot. He emerged about a minute later, wearing his jeans and black tee shirt. He walked up to the counter, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket. I walked over and he wrapped an arm around my shoulders as the lady started ringing up his clothes. She kept looking up and watching him, and I just glared at her, thinking _look away, sister. This one's mine. From the way Jesse looked down and gave me sort of a half smile, I could tell he had heard my thought, and was amused by it. Oh well. _

            Jesse had obviously heard me thinking about that day, since he said, "well you _are a rather…what was that?" he asked, cutting himself off mid-sentence. I listened carefully. _

            "Jesse, I don't hear –"

            "– Shh," he said, putting a finger to his lips. I listened even more carefully, and finally realized what he had heard. There was a sort of crackling noise coming from the ground. I felt all the blood rush from my face as I looked down and my eyes were met with a ring of bright blue fire. Oh god. "Ah, Susannah?" Jesse started. "Do you think we should maybe…move?" he said quietly. I nodded and walked into my room and saw the exact thing I didn't want to see. Ever again: Paul Slater sitting on my bed, reading a magazine. 

            "Hello, hello," he said, grinning. I looked where I thought his wings would be, but there weren't any. What the hell was going on? "Fancy meeting you here, Suze. It's been awhile. How's life working out for you, deSilva?" he asked Jesse, smirking. I wanted to walk right over there and knock that sneer right off his face, but Jesse tightened his hold on me, knowing what I wanted to do. 

            "Slater," Jesse said neutrally. 

            "What the _hell are you doing in my room?" I yelled. Okay, I was a little pissed. You would be, too, if you walked in your room and found the one person you hated most in the world casually sitting on your bed, reading one of your magazines. _

            "No need to be hostile, Suze," he said with a shrug. "Just wanted to pop by and say hi," he said. He was hiding something. What was going on?

            "Paul. There's such a thing as a _door_. You were dead. Cali killed you. What the hell are you doing alive?" I asked. Okay, so I was being hostile. I saw every reason to be hostile, and fully intended to take advantage of the opportunity. "I was there. I watched you die. You're not glowing, so you're not a ghost. What _are_ you?" I asked with more emphasis on the word "are" than I had planned. Where was Cali when you needed her?

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A/N: Well here's the start on the sequel! Same deal – lemme know what you think and all that. Ooh, mystery. Dundundunnnnn…


	2. Back Again?

            **A/N: I'm glad you all like it! I don't have a plot in mind yet, but the characters will fix that. *Grin* Sorry it took so long to update. I have a million things to do…but on the upside, I have an interview with an author on Tuesday (not a publisher…there, are, like, no publishers in Michigan. *Sobs*). I'm told mister Doug Allyn can help me figure out how to get my work published. Deciding what chapter of my best book to give 'im to read…thinking chapter 5; Iris encounters assassins…*ponderponderponder***

            **Fireblade**** K'Chona: If I get published, I'll post a BIIIIIIG note on this site over one of my chapters!**

            **Nothin**** to you: Three letters: L. O. L. **

            **Emily: Thank you! **

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            Chapter 2: Back again?

                        **Suze**

             "What am I?" Paul asked, looking hurt. "I can't believe you'd ask that, Suze," he said, pouting. "Well, deSilva? You about you? Use your new mind powers and find out what I am," he said, smirking at Jesse. 

            Jesse frowned in concentration, and raised that eyebrow with the scar in it. "Okay, but how did you…?" 

            "How did I what? Come back?" Paul chuckled evilly, creeping me out. "My master likes me," he said with a smirk. "He gave me another life so I could come back and finish my job." Wow, he was being _really creepy. _

            "Yeah, you think you could be a little creepier when you say that? Like, could you start drooling blood, and bare your fangs, maybe?" I said, putting my hands on my hips. "Jesse, what is he?" I asked, turning my back to Paul.

            "He's…human," he said with a shrug. "He's a human. Er, a human shifter, but he's still human. As far as I can tell, anyway," he said, leaning against my wall. "What, exactly, _is_ your mission, Slater?" Jesse asked him over my head. I turned around and he pulled me into his arms, letting me lean against him. 

            "My Job, deSilva. Not mission. Get it straight," Paul said, rolling his eyes. "Well, it _was_ to take over earth. Now it's to bring Cali back. She wasn't supposed to die," he said quietly, almost sadly. "She was supposed to be able to break the link and kill _me. I have to fix it. I - I mean, if I don't, I'm screwing up everyone's lives, not just hers." This was weird. I'd never seen him like this before. He looked really upset...but _why_ would he be upset? He was the one who had killed her..._

            "Okay, so why come to us?" I asked him, raising an eyebrow. 

            "You're the only two who know what happened." When I opened my mouth, Paul held up a hand. "I mean, the only two who can _do_ anything. Father Dom is too old for all this. I need you two to come to Shadowland with me and find her," he said, standing. Alright, so that was it. He wanted help with his mission/job because he was too inept to do it himself. I had to roll my eyes. 

            "And how do you propose _I_ get to Shadowland?" Jesse asked, his voice rumbling in his chest, against my ear. I suspected he was raising an eyebrow, but I didn't dare look up to see. I wanted to stay in his arms forever… "I am neither a mediator nor a shifter," he pointed out. I actually couldn't see how he wanted to go back there and risk getting stuck there and all that after he'd just come back to life. 

            "I know," Paul said, nodding. "That's where Cali's powers come in," he said, folding his arms. "Unless I'm completely off, you can get there through meditation. You can use her powers to take you deep into it, so your body and spirit actually split. We could _try the method Father Dom and Suze used when she went up there, but something tells me it would be less like dying if you were to use Cali's powers," he said. I could see his point, really. But I still couldn't figure out why Cali being dead upset Paul so much. Unless…No. Not possible. Paul was a heartless killer. Not possible. _

            ~Very possible, Susannah, ~ Jesse corrected me. ~It's as possible as a ghost falling in love with a mediator, ~ he mindspoke quietly, tilting my head up to look into my eyes. 

            In…In _love?...Okay, Jesse and I would definitely be talking soon. But not now. "Okay, okay. So we'll help you," I said, turning to Paul. "But if you do anything off, it'll be your ass." _

            Paul held up a hand. "I'll do nothing to hurt anyone, I swear. Are you ready to do this?" 

            "Well, shouldn't we talk to Father Dom? Or Cali's parents? Er, foster parents, I mean," I corrected myself. "Shouldn't someone know what we're doing in case something goes wrong?" I didn't know what I was doing, and I didn't know if Paul knew what we were doing any more than I did. "I mean, we're not exactly - "

            "Suze, we can't afford to wait. Besides, Jesse has to bring Cali back to life," he said, looking apologetically over at Jesse. 

            "I have to do _what_?" Jesse asked, placing me against the wall and walking over to Paul. "I can't bring her back. I don't know _how. How can she come back if she doesn't have a body for her soul to get back into?" he asked, confused. _

            "I'm not sure, but that's where you come in. I imagine it'll be hard to do this since you won't be able to see her, but Suze and I can help you with that. Now let's do this before we can't." 

            "What's that supposed to mean?" I asked. 

            Paul shook his head. "That doesn't matter. Let's go. Now. Jesse, you go first so one of us can pull you out if it doesn't work. Sit down somewhere and put your fingers to your temples," he instructed. To my utter shock, Jesse actually listened. He walked over to my bed and sat down cross legged. "Put your index and middle finger on your temples." Jesse did. "Now think about pulling energy from your head." Jesse nodded. "Close your eyes." He did. A few seconds later, Jesse collapsed. I had an urge to go run to him, but Paul threw an arm out, stopping me. "He's fine. Let's go."

            I walked over to the bed and sat down on it. I concentrated on the Shadowland, feeling the cold fog swirl around my legs as if I were back there again, and sure enough when I opened my eyes, I was. A few seconds later, Paul appeared next to me. I looked around. "Jesse?" No answer. "Jesse!" 

            "Yes?" a silky voice said from directly behind me. I spun around and smacked into him. 

            "Oh. Ah, hi." Oh yeah. Smooth, Suze. God. Why can't I ever be smooth and sexy around Jesse? No, when around Jesse, I'm squeaky and uncoordinated. Believe me, it sucks. 

            "Right. Now how do we go about finding Calixte?" he asked Paul, who was looking around at the doors. 

            "We go into the doors," he said matter-of-factly, as if he had been saying the sky is blue. 

            "What?" Jesse and I chorused. "Won't we get sucked in if we open them?" I asked Paul. 

            "Well, how else are we going to find Cali?" he asked, then started walking down the halls. "Jesse, call to her telepathically. Cali!" Paul called, then waited. No answer. "Cali?" he called, knocking on a door. He frowned, and twisted the doorknob. Instead of getting sucked in, as we had expected, there was a loud crackling noise. Paul's veins turned bright red, glowed, and he collapsed. 

            "What the…?" I asked, and walked over to him. When I touched his neck to check his pulse, a shock ran through me. "Ow!" I yelped. 

            "Are you alright, Susannah?" Jesse asked, resting a hand on my shoulder. I nodded. "We have to get him back. Maybe that will fix him…Um…"

            "I'll shift back and wake you up, okay?" I grabbed Paul's hand, trying to ignore the shocks that ran through my body when I touched him, and concentrated on getting back home. When I opened my eyes, I was laying on my floor. I had evidently collapsed and rolled off the bed…oops. Good thing Jesse and Paul weren't awake to see my clumsiness. I tapped Jesse's shoulder. "Jesse," I said, trying to wake him from his meditated state. "Wake up," I added. Jesse, right on cue, opened his eyes. 

            "Alright. We need to figure out what's wrong with Slater, and we need to figure it out fast," he said, running a hand through that gorgeous hair of his. 

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**A/N:** Okay, not as good as I wanted, but I got a tad stuck. Lol. The plot should get moving again and I should update more. Sorry, all! Let me know what you think of it, even if it's bad…and short. ^^;;


	3. Complications

**            A/N:** I promise it's about to get more interesting. I hope!

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            Chapter 3: Complications

                        **Suze**

            Okay, so we had to figure out what was wrong with Paul and fast. Unfortunately, to do that, we had to find Cali because I didn't know how to fix Paul, and I know Jesse didn't. "How do we even _find_ her?" I asked him with a sigh. "I mean, she's gone. She's not even a ghost. She had no unfinished business or anything. She's just…gone." 

            "Well, I could try to figure out how to search for her. Maybe she was reincarnated," Jesse said with a shrug. 

            "Okay, try that. If that doesn't work, we're totally screwed." I looked at him as he nodded, not looking me in the eye. Hmm… "Jesse, you know something, don't you?" I accused, frowning and putting my hands on my hips. 

            Jesse blinked, attempting to look innocent. "What are you talking about, _querida? What could I possibly know?" he asked, blinking at me. "Calixte gave me her powers, not her knowledge. I know no more than I did before," he said feebly. _

            "Jesse, you're not being very convincing," I told him. "I don't need to have Cali's powers to know you're not telling me something. What is it? You know how to find her, don't you?" If he wasn't telling me, there had to be some sort of a reason. He doesn't usually hide things from me without a reason, and I was determined to find out what it was. 

            "Alright, alright." He sighed. "I have to sort of…die…to get to her.Or at least, I'd have to split my body and my soul. My powers as a mortal aren't as strong as they would be if I were a ghost. Calixte is good at hiding. I need to be able to move fast, and I can't do that if I'm a mortal." 

            I blinked. Crap… "Could you do this without dying? Maybe just split yourself, and then come back fast…?" I asked, biting my lip. I _really_ didn't want Jesse to die again. I mean, he'd just come back…I was _so not letting him kill himself, even if it was unintentional. _

            Jesse thought. "Hmm. Well, Calixte had said she could do it. Split herself, I mean. She split her vision, so I know she can do that. But split myself without dying? I'm not sure. I can try…But what if…" He sighed. "Susannah, I can't guarantee I can come back alive. I might end up a ghost again. Or if I don't have any unfinished business anymore, I might end up just…gone. I don't want to do that to you, Susannah," he whispered, hugging me. 

            I sighed, returning his hug by wrapping my arms around his neck. "I love you," I heard myself whisper. Oh god! I said it…I actually said it…oh god! Oh god, oh god, oh _god. _

            "Susannah," Jesse murmured into my hair. "Relax." He pushed me back, so we could see each other's faces. "I love you, too," he whispered, and then leaned in and kissed me. Yay! He loved me back! I can so hear the hallelujah chorus playing in the background… "Haaallelujah…haaallelujah…hallelujah, hallelujah, hal-le-lu-jah!" I could totally get up and break into song right now…if it weren't for the fact that Jesse was kissing me. I really didn't want him to stop kissing me. _Ever. _

            "Well, I'm going to have to stop kissing you if you want to find Calixte," he muttered, amused, lips still touching mine. 

            "Can't it wait a few minutes?" I asked, and kissed him again. Jesse didn't answer. I mean, I wanted to find Cali, but I was liplocked with Jesse at the moment…We went on kissing for about five more minutes, then came up for air. When I leaned in, Jesse reluctantly – yay, reluctantly! – put a hand up. 

            "We should find her. Alright, I'm going to try to split without killing myself," he said with a shudder, and closed his eyes. I saw him frowning in concentration, and then he collapsed. My blood ran cold. 

            "Jesse?" I asked. He didn't answer…Oh god! Did he kill himself? "Jesse!" I shouted. Nothing. Oh my god…

            ~Relax, _querida,~ I heard in my head. Where was he? I looked around. ~I'm in the shadowland,~ he told me. I bent over and checked his pulse. Nothing. ~I know it seems that way, but I'm not dead. Believe me. I've been dead, and this isn't it. Shift up and come help me,~ he mindspoke. I couldn't help it. I leaned over and kissed his lips. ~I felt that,~ he mindspoke, amused. I could almost feel him smirking and blushed. _

            I sat next to his body and closed my eyes, thinking of the cold, swirling mist, and the long, unending hall of the shadowland. When I opened them, I was there. "Jesse?" I asked, looking around. 

            "Susannah?" His voice echoed in the hall, then he appeared in front of me. He grinned when I stepped backwards and lunged forward and caught me when I tripped over my feet and fell backwards. "Smooth," he said, still grinning. 

            Since when did Jesse use the word "smooth"? How confusing. "Alright, let's go find Cali," I said, and looked at the doors. "Come on…where are you, Cali?" I asked them "Come on…" 

            Jesse sighed. "I've been trying to find her." He walked over to a door and pressed his palm against a door. ~Calixte?~ I hard him call in mindspeak. 

            "Call her Cali," I suggested, then blinked. Where had that come from? Weird… 

            ~Cali? Where are you?~ he called. A door at the end of the hall pulsed red. ~Cali?~ We looked at each other, and then started walking quickly in the direction of the glowing door. When we reached it, we looked at each other, then looked at the door. Jesse touched it and yanked his hand back, shaking it. "Ow," he muttered. 

            "Hot?" When he nodded, I bit my lip. Okay. I had a pretty good pain tolerance…maybe I should give it a shot…I reached forward to the door. Even before I touched it, I felt heat radiating from it. I reached down to the knob. I knew it was going to be hotter than even the door, as it was metal, but I had to do it. I braced myself and wrapped a hand around the knob. Pain seared through me, and I turned the knob. The last thing I saw was red flames rushing at me, feeling some really, really intense heat. 

            "Susannah!" I heard…but it was quiet, and echoed…I heard Jesse call me again, and then I blacked out. 

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**            A/N: Dundundunnnn! It'll get better, I promise…Lol. Lemme know what you think…**

            **Emily:** You'd think so, wouldn't you? Lol…The way I see it, is Cali would've been a mediator even if she was human. She only gave him her angel powers when she gave him the rest of her life force. 


	4. TheNew Cali?

**            A/N:** Sorry I haven't updated much – my muse is taking a break, lol. No, the ideas just haven't been flowing as fast as I'd like them to…I actually have some for this chapter, though, so it should be interesting. Muahaha…

            **Emily: you're right, I did address it to the wrong person…Sorry, **I luv jesse**! Forgive mee! *Genuflects* … *Falls over***

            **Fireblade**** K'chona: Working on it! **

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            Chapter 4: The…New Cali?

                        **Jesse**

            Susannah has been knocked out. Marvelous. _Not. Nombre de Dios, I'm talking like Susannah…I saw the door flare red and explode right in front of her. I saw her fall under the pieces of wood, so I knelt and dug her out from under the pieces of the now dead door. Shockingly enough, the fire didn't burn anything. It was just sort of…there. Anyway, I pulled her out of the debris and stood up. Facing me was a girl I really didn't recognize, though she reminded me of Calixte…was it her, reincarnated? That would be just typical of her…_

            "Ah, hello?" I said to her. She had been in sort of a trancelike state, and now came out of it, blinking. 

            "Where am I? Who are you, and who is _she_?" She pointed at Susannah, who I had cradled in my arms. This girl's voice reminded me of Calixte's. It had the same tone quality and pitch, actually, but there was a different…something…about it. Interesting. I'd never met someone I knew reincarnated, so this was…new to me. 

            "You are in the Shadowland. I am Jesse, and she is Susannah. Look, I don't know if you know, but I think you are a friend of ours, reincarnated. Do you remember how to get out of here?" 

            She snapped back into her trance. "The same way you got here," she said. Aha – _that was Calixte. She was speaking through her new form. This girl had honey blonde, curly hair. Her eyes were exactly Calixte's color, and they had the exact same form. I suddenly realized what it was that was really different about her – I wasn't drawn to her the way I had been to Calixte. She had been part siren, though, so that explains a lot. _

            "The same way I…will that bring you and Susannah with me?" I asked her, hoping I was speaking to Calixte and not this other girl. 

            "Um, yes? Why else would I have told you to go back the way you came?" Oh good, it was Calixte. 

            I thanked her and closed my eyes. I closed my eyes in concentration, still holding Susannah. I felt the girl's hand grasp my shoulder – probably Calixte's doing – and then I felt myself start to fall. You know those dreams where you're falling, but wake up right before you hit? That was exactly how it was. I opened my eyes with a jolt and found myself in one piece, back in my body. Susannah was still unconscious, but thankfully not dead (as I found out when I checked her pulse.) 

            I heard someone clearing her throat near the window, so I glanced over. It was the nameless girl Calixte's soul now inhabited. "What is your name, anyway?" I asked her, turning to face her. 

            "Ah, I'm Aria," she said quietly. 

            "Aria…interesting," I remarked. "Do you remember anything about your past life?" 

            "Well, not – Jesse, just talk to _me._ Don't call her Aria," Calixte ordered. Well _this was rather Jekyll and Hyde if I am any judge. I read the book awhile back, and I've found some uses for the term "Jekyll and Hyde," such as this situation. The way Calixte kept interrupting Aria. "Listen, Jesse. Paul and Suze are in trouble. The doors are killing them. I have to go under to save them and you have to keep me semi conscious. Okay? Don't let me pass out," she said, walking over to me. Alright, so Calixte had her powers. Wait a minute…Dios, is this confusing…How can she have her powers if __I have them, too? She gave me the rest of her life force, along with her powers, and I didn't think Aria was an angel, so how could Calixte possibly still have her powers? Maybe they were new powers…or maybe the powers went with the soul, not the mortal body. Or immortal…or _something_. So confused…Aria shook her head, blinking. "Well that was odd. I don't remember walking over here… - I'm taking over, sister," Calixte snapped at Aria._

            Oh, this was going to be strange. Calixte sat down next to me on Susannah's bed and rested a hand on Susannah's throat. Her hand started to glow white, and her breathing became heavier. I automatically touched her temples and gave her a little energy, just to make sure she'd stay conscious. I didn't know what would happen if she passed out. 

            About an hour later, she pulled her hand away and shook her head, blinking. "Whoa…dizzy…" 

            "Who the _hell are you and what are you doing in my room?" Susannah snapped at Calixte/Aria. _

            "It's Cali, Suze. I just saved you; I'd think you'd be a little more grateful – I don't know what I'm doing here…I'm -" I reached over and covered her mouth before she could finish her sentence. 

            ~Susannah, we have a bit of a situation here. Calixte was reincarnated into _her,~_ I mindspoke, jerking my head in her direction while talking to Susannah. ~The situation is rather…Jekyll and Hyde. Calixte keeps taking over, fighting Aria for control of her body. We have to do something and I don't know what. I don't suppose _you_ do?~ 

            "No, Jesse, I - " I covered her mouth too, telling her to answer in thought. I could hear it if she directed it at me. She glared daggers at me, so I uncovered her mouth. _Fine, _Jesse_. No, I don't have any idea what to do. This is __Cali__'s__ field, not mine. Evidently, not yours either, seeing as you're as confused as I am if not more so. _

            "Mmph!" Calixte protested, so I uncovered her mouth. "I have to fix Paul," she said, then walked over to the other side of Susannah's bed. She sat next to Paul and rested a hand on his throat. Her hand glowed white – a little more dully than before – and her breathing intensified and slowed. As I went to touch her temples and jolt her with energy, she collapsed. I swore loudly in Spanish and Susannah raised an eyebrow. 

            "What's going on?" 

            "She said not to let her pass out – didn't say why, just not to let her. She wouldn't warn me against something if she didn't have a reason, would she?" I walked around to the side Calixte/Aria was on and touched her, quickly yanking my hand back. She was hot. This was bad. I didn't know why, I just had this awful feeling that this was very bad. 

                        **Calixte/Aria**

            Fuck! _Jesse, you idiot! _

            "What's going on?" Aria asked aloud. 

            _Jesse let me pass out, the idiot, I told her. _Now shut up and let me figure out how to get out of here!_ Aria was a bit of an airhead. __So unlike me. How could someone like _me_ get reincarnated as someone like _her_? With her curled, honey blonde hair and big, blue doe eyes. God, she annoyed me. The worst thing was, she _was_ me. _

            This girl who kept snapping at me was really mean…she was _in my head. I'm so confused. She said her name's Calixte – ah, I mean Cali. I can hear all her thoughts, and she's _really_ smart, but she's kinda…bitchy. I suppose I can understand why, but you'd think she'd be a little more grateful. I'm being her body and I'm not fighting her, except when I want to talk. I'm seeing the weirdest things in her head, words like Hevanican and Tridaggers, and Hellatian and things like that…So confusing. _So_ confusing. I like to think I'm not much of an airhead, but __she thinks I am. It's really annoying. "I don't understand why you passing out is so bad," I told her. _

            _It's bad because I'm deep in meditation, trying to save this jerk, Paul. I'm too deep to get myself out, and no one can wake me up because the state is induced by my power, which is in pure state right now, she told me. Oh yeah, like _that_ helped. _

            "I don't get it. Can you clarify?" I asked as nicely as I could. 

            _If we don't get out of it, our body goes deeper and deeper. I didn't say anything because it sounded like she was going to continue…_If we go too deep our heart stops and we die, you airhead!_ Whoa. Um…_

            "Oh." 

            _"Oh?" "OH?!" Are you kidding me? God…I can't believe I'm reincarnated as you__, she said, still sounding really pissed off. _I hope there's a way to split us and leave us both alive. Either that, or you're gonna die,_ she told me, sounding thoughtful now. Oh yeah, that's comforting. "Either that or you're gonna die", huh? God…I can't believe my last life was such a bitch…_

            "You're a bitch," I told her. 

            _You're an airhead. Deal with it. _

                        **Suze**

            Okay, now Jesse was panicking. He was pacing in circles around my room, muttering to himself in Spanish, and I was sitting there, watching Cali. "Jesse, stop it. You're going to put a hole in my carpet." He obediently stopped pacing and sat down next to me. Then he tried to stand up five minutes later. I, of course, yanked him back down before he could. "Stop. If I know Cali, she'll fix this. Either that, or you're gonna have to learn how to use your powers fast." 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

**A/N:** Muahahahahahaha…the next chapter should be interesting…when I get around to writing it. ^^;;


	5. Trapped

**                A/N:** Damn, my mind hates me. Lol. Ideas for this are _not flowing – I'm forcing them. Yeah, it's bad. I wish I could talk to the characters and tell them to stop letting me do all the work and take the plot into their own hands more often…When that happens, my stories get good. When it doesn't, they're forced. Grr. Darn all you charries involved in this fic…*Glares at them* _

                Cali: Well that's not nice…it's not _our fault you have writer's block!_

                Me: There is no such thing. *Sticks my tongue out* Besides, you're supposed to help me write this!

                Cali: …Oh. 

                Me: *Eyeroll*

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

                Chapter 5: Trapped

                                **Cali/Aria**

                Okay. This sucks. I'm trapped in my new life's head. _God_, does this suck. How do I get out? I can't talk to Jesse or Suze because we're so deep in meditation I have no control over my- her body. Damn this. 

                "How do we get out of this?" That airhead asked me. 

                _If I knew, do you think we'd still _be_ here?! _Yeah, I was being a total bitch to her, but I was scared, okay? This has never happened before. I've never been trapped in my own body in meditation. _Jesse, wake me up…I called to him, praying with all my might that he could hear me. Then I thought of something – how was he going to wake me up? He couldn't…Crap. When I'm in light meditation, it's hard to wake me up. Deep in it, it's nearly impossible. Something __big would have to happen to wake me. I even had trouble pulling myself out of it. I sighed. __Aria, try to open your eyes._

                I felt her straining. "I can't. I can't – they won't open!" Wonderful. Now _she was starting to get scared. I had to calm down. Both of us scared out of our wits was __not going to help. I took some deep breaths, forcing my pulse to slow down. It had been going _really_ fast – if I hadn't slowed it, I would've started hyperventilating. I __really hated being dead. I really, really, _really_ hated it. I wasn't even a ghost! I was stuck in this airhead's body…Grrrrrrrrr…_

                "Would you _stop_ calling me an airhead?" 

                _Would you _stop_ acting like one? Okay, shut up for a while. I have to figure out how to get us out of this, I snapped. __God, she was pissing me off…Fuck. I'm so screwed…_

                                **Suze**

                "How do we get them out of this?" I asked Jesse. I didn't expect him to know, but I was starting to get a little panicky myself. Cali was a) trapped in someone's body, b) stuck in meditation, and c) stuck with _Aria_ in meditation. I could only imagine how annoyed she was. Aria had been bothering _me, and Cali has…had less of a tolerance for airheaded people than I do. _

                "I don't know, _querida_. We have to wake them up…or _something_. They can't just stay that way…Calixte – Cali herself said not to let her pass out," Jesse remembered for, like, the eight-thousandth time.

                "Obviously!" I said, exasperated. 

                "Wait a minute…" He looked struck with an idea. "This meditation is induced by her power, right?" I shrugged and nodded, saying I guessed so. "If she used her power to start it, all I have to do is figure out how to use _my_ power to stop it. That's it – that's our answer! Alright. Now the question is what do I do?" 

                I bit my lip. "I don't know…Um…Didn't Cali say something about pushing mentally? Try that," I suggested. 

                                **Jesse**

                I nodded, and cupped my hands around an invisible ball, intending to try and make a sphere of power. I hoped this would work. I mentally pushed, and immediately felt heat scorching its way through my veins. I yelped, but stopped when I saw a sphere of mint green power forming between my hands. "_Nombre__ de dios," I breathed. This was, as Susannah would say, "freaky." _

                And then she said it. "Freaky…" 

                I couldn't help but smile slightly. We were evidently on the same wavelength… "Right." I pulled it back into my hands, and this time it felt icy, not hot. _Weird. Of course, Calix-Cali had lived with this her whole life, so it wasn't weird to her. It was _definitely _weird to me. "How do I do this? Um…" _

                "'Um' is right. Ah…try putting your fingers to her temples…maybe that'll bring her back," she suggested. "Shock her with energy." 

                I shrugged and touched two fingers to Cali's – Aria's? Temples and pushed a little energy into my hands, which immediately started to get _very_ hot. I yelped and pulled them away, shaking them. "Maybe I should learn to control the amount of power before I try reviving her?" 

                "Yeah, that's probably a good plan," Susannah said awkwardly. I suspected she hadn't thought about there being different power levels either. How did Cali _remember_ all these little details? _Nombre__ de dios. I looked at my hand and thought about a sieve, one with tiny holes. My hand glowed mint green, but not nearly as brightly as before. It wasn't as hot as it had been either. I pushed the same amount of power into my left hand and touched Cali/Aria's temples. _

                ~Wake up, Cali,~ I called to her in mindspeak. 

                                **Cali/Aria**

                I heard a _really_ faint voice calling my name. It sounded like…_Jesse? Had he figured out how to use his powers? Thank __god!! Now if only I could figure out how to talk to him…I couldn't mindspeak from inside Aria's head the way I'd been able to when I was awake. Whoa…lightheaded…_

                "I feel kind of lightheaded," Aria said to me. 

                I immediately stopped being such a bitch. _So do I…this is bad. Ohh shit, this is bad… the process was starting already. We were dying. The lightheadedness was caused by a lack of oxygen. We lacked oxygen because we were too deep in meditation and/or were unconscious. If I'd been in my own body, I'd have been shaking like hell right now. __Aria, you have to promise me you won't panic if you figure out what's going on right now – that's the worst thing you can do. Panicking makes the body want to hyperventilate and we can't because we can't get enough air – that'll kill us faster._

                "'Kill us _faster_'?!" she yelled. Damn it…

                _STOP, Aria! Relax…_I said in my most soothing siren voice. How to contact Jesse…? Umm…_Okay, brace yourself.  I took a deep (mental) breath. __JESSE!! I screamed at the top of my lungs, the word tearing from my throat. Ow…~Cali, if you can hear me, move your right arm,~ I heard the faint voice say. Things were starting to spin…No way. I _refuse_ to die again. No fucking way. _Aria, move your right arm. __

                "But I –"

                _-Just DO it! _Okay, I was going to apologize like hell to Aria if we ever got out of this, and if I get my own body back. If I don't, I will be serious pissed. I faintly felt our right arm twitch a little. 

                                **Jesse**

                Her right arm moved a little bit. Thank _dios_! They're still alive! Okay, now all I had to figure out how to do was wake them up…Maybe _I_ could wake up Paul, and Paul could wake…no, that wouldn't work. 

                "Um…" Susannah was thinking, too. "I don't know what to _do_, Jesse. I _hate not being able to do anything! I hate feeling helpless!" She slammed her fists into the mattress, almost angrier than I'd ever seen her. I wrapped my arms around her and stroked her back, trying to calm her down. She pushed me away. "No _time_, Jesse! What do we do?" _

                I recognized this anger as fear, so it didn't bother me. What to do? If I didn't do something, Cali and Aria would die. I had figured it out when I checked her pulse and found it weak.  "Well…Calix –Cali can't talk to me through Aria's mind because Aria doesn't have telepathy. Wait a minute…What if Calixte could unlock the area of the brain used for telepathy? She'd be able to talk, wouldn't she?" From reading scientific articles, I had recently discovered that humans use bout ten percent of their brains. Calixte, as an angel, appeared to use all of it – or at least fifty percent of it. She was going to have to unlock that area of the mind, and I'd have to go on the assumption that she could hear me. 

                "You know, that just might work," Susannah said, in thought. 

                I nodded "Alright, let me try…" I switched to telepathy, or mindspeak as Calixte called it. ~Calix – Cali, if you can hear me, you have to go into Aria's mind and unlock the part of the human brain that uses telepathy. Once we can talk, you can talk me through pulling you out. When you unlock it, let me know,~ I told her, and crossed my fingers. All I could do now was wait. 

                                **Cali/Aria**

                Oh my god. Jesse is a genius. _Alright, Aria, did you hear that? I asked her. "Hear what?" Grr… _Okay, I have to go into your mind and unlock the part of the human mind that uses telepathy. Humans _do_ only use ten percent of their brains. I'm gonna leave for awhile, alright? Try to stay relaxed,_ I told her. _

                "Alright," she said with a mental shrug. She had no idea how dangerous the situation was…We were _dying and she was just like "Okay!" I shook my head and raced into her head. This was weird – it was like my conscious mind already stuck in meditation, going even deeper. This was a risk – I had to be fast. When I found her mind, it was a long hall. My first reaction was "OH MY GOD, it's the shadowland…" only there was no mist, and the doors were white. I took a glance inside the doors without opening them, thinking of telepathy. When something caught my mind's eye, I raced towards it. It was the door – I knew it. I tried to turn the knob and found it locked. I shot it with as much power as I thought I could afford. The lock on the door exploded, and I jumped backwards, letting myself fall to the floor as a wave of power washed over me. I raced back to Aria. ___

~I found it!~ I mindspoke to Jesse. 


End file.
